First Few Days In Canada

I landed in Toronto on Dec 13th 2003 as landed immigrant. I flew in from the US so the flight and all was pretty cool. As I came into the airport at Toronto I was asked to go to the immigration counter. The woman there asked a few basic questions like where I am coming from and stuff. Also, she asked me if I had funds more than CND 10000. I said yes and she didn’t ask anything further. She also mentioned that the usual time for PR Card processing for new immigrants is 4-6 weeks but they are experiencing backlogs.

The next stop was the Customs counter. The gentleman there asked me similar kind of questions. He also asked me about the funds I am carrying. I told him I had a little over 10000. So he asked me to show him the checks. I showed him a check of USD 7500 and cash USD 800 which he converted to CND. This was basically it at the airport. I was done in like less then 45 minutes.

From there I went to a friend’s house that lives very close to downtown and stayed over for the night. The next day being Sunday not a lot could be accomplished. So just went to the mall and was checking the stores. I got a cell phone from the mall that day as I didn’t have any other means of being in touch with people. Later on Sunday evening I moved to my accommodation downtown that I had booked over the Internet while I was in the US. My friend helped me plan my next 2 days in Toronto so I could get all my documentation straight as soon as possible.

Monday morning, I started at 8:30am and went to the HRDC Office downtown which is located inside the Dufferin Mall. The mall is 2 blocks from the Dufferin St subway stop on the east line. I applied for my SIN Card there which took less then 30 minutes, no lines nothing. The SIN card is mailed to you in 3-4 weeks. After getting that done I walked back to the Dufferin subway station and spotted a CIBC bank right across the street from there so I went in and opened an account there. Next I took the subway towards the west and got down at Bay St. and walked a couple blocks down to go to 900 Bay St. where there is an office for the Ontario Transportation Department. I got the knowledge test book from there which is for like CND 15 with taxes. That was basically the end of the day. I went home and read through the book for the knowledge test. Since I have given a similar exam in US the stuff was pretty straight forward.

Tuesday morning, I started an 8:30am again and went to the Transportation office on Bay St again. Paid CND 60.00 and applied for the knowledge test. The price actually is CND 10 for the knowledge test and CND 50 for the G1 license. I gave the test the same day and got the temporary G1 license. All this took like an hour and 30 minutes. Your actual picture ID license is mailed to you in 3-4 weeks. The next stop now is to get the Ontario Health Benefits Card done. So went back to the Bay St subway station and went east to Bloor St and then North to Sheppard St. On 47 Sheppard St is the office for the Ontario Health Benefits. It is just a block down the Sheppard St subway station. For the health card you need 3 documents of proof. First is your passport and immigration paper, second is your temporary G1 license, and third is a credit card or bank card. Applying for the health card takes like an hour. The health benefits start 3 months after you landed in Canada as an immigrant so it will be mailed to you just a little before that.

Well this basically covers all the documentation one needs to do when you arrive in Canada and it just takes 2 working days. To get a better picture of how to move around the subway stops that I mentioned you can check a map of the TTC subway at http://myhome.shinbiro.com/~cntower/subway.pdf. It makes sense to buy the one day tour pass for the first 2 days which is like CND 7.75 per pass. It will save you some time and money while trying to get around places in the city.

Now I am just waiting to get my PR Card, SIN Card, License and Health card in the mail.

I hope this information is helpful to some new people coming to Toronto anytime soon.

Good luck,

Abb

sounds like you had a very thorough plan, well done

try aand geta presidents choice bank account thru Loblaws - you don't have to pay fee's for that.

Good luck with the driving test

I also did the similar thing before landing last year but i didnt apply for Health and Driving licence since i have to return back to USA for my work so my friend collected the PR card and SIN card and gave to me later when we meet.

Abb,
thanks for sharing the experience...it helps those who are planning the move in near future.
1. Could you also please throw some light on what other documents do they look at other than passport, landing papers and funds at the immigration counter like college degrees, job refernece, income tax clearance etc.

2. Is a US drivers licence not directly converted to Canadian licence? Do US licence holders also need to take written and driving test.

3. During the first 3 months when the health insurance is not covered, is there any private health insurance which you could recommend.

4. How is the rental situation there, I am looking for a room in downtiown area ( single room prefferred) . How much should i budget. Is $600-700 enough?

Will appreciate inputs from all those who read this
thanks.

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What can be imagined, can be achieved.

Abb,

Good information - if you don't mind I can put this article in our Articles section..

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A Proud Indian Canadian

Hi Abb, Thanks for such a detailed and informative post.

Would like to hear experiences of people who moved to Canada recently from the US.

Abb, did you face any kind of difficulties after you moved from US to Canada ?

We will be moving to Canada during Mar or early April 2004.

Thanks for your replies.

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"Throw your dreams into space like a kite, and you do not know what it will bring back, a new life, a new friend, a new love, a new country."

"Is a US drivers licence not directly converted to Canadian licence? Do US licence holders also need to take written and driving test. "

If you hold US driver license, you do not need to go through the testing process. You just need to get your driving record from the US States which issued you driver licenses previously (I think 3 or 5 years not sure). In Jan 2001, when I landed this was the case. I called Texas Department of Public Safety in Austin and they faxed the driving records/letter to the driver license issuing place in Ottawa where I applied for the Ontario Driver License. Only test I gave was Eye Exam ;-)